CAO 99-15TO:
FROM:
RE:
CITY OF MIAMI BEACH
DATE: July 9, 1999
SERGIO RODRIGUEZ, CITY MANAGER
MURRAY H. DUBBIN, CITY ATTORNEY~ ~
CAO #99-15: GREATER MIAMI CONVENTION AND VISITORS
BUREAU/BLUE RIBBON COMMITTEE: COMMISSIONER DERMER
INQUIRY CONCERNING "CONFLICT OF INTEREST".
Commissioner Dermer has questioned whether a conflict of interest exists due to Wendy Hart
and Pauline Winicks' membership on the Blue Ribbon Committee. Specifically, Wendy Hart is
Director of the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau, and is also a member of the City's
Visitor and Convention Authority. Pauline Winick, alleged to have a "long standing working
relationship with the Bureau, is a member of the City's Cultural Arts Council.
Inasmuch as neither Ms. Hart nor Ms. Winick are employed by or have any contractual
relationship with the Bureau, no conflicting employment/contractual relationship exists under State
law. Nor does a voting conflict exist, given that neither Ms. Hart nor Ms. Wittick are alleged to be
receiving any special private gain as a result of action taken by the Blue Ribbon Committee, nor are
any facts alleged substantiating a finding of special private gain on the part of a principal of Ms. Hart
or Ms. Winick. (If additional facts concerning some connection between an employer of the subject
Committee members and action taken by the Committee exist, this information should be transmitted
to the City Attomey's office for further evaluation regarding conflict of interest.)
s:\caos\~9-1 ~. cao